by Gavin » Thu May 27, 2010 10:01 pm
to be honest at 200k i'd be more worried about the van than the engine.
my w reg 2.5 di workhorse has 153k on it, and apart from the air-in-fuel stuttering that all di's suffer from its doing pretty well, always clean on the mot despite the fact i often cant be arsed to check the oil and when i do its off the stick.
the van on the other hand is a complete sh*tbox, the clutch is shot, the starter sticks, the heater motor bearing has collapsed and the motor has burnt out, the front arches have turned to rust and fallen apart, despite being unmarked 18 moths ago, in fact threres rust creaping in everywhere, chassis rails blistering at the drain holes and along the floor seams. my last van went the same way, within 18 months of the rust being a noticable problem there were holes in the rear corners big enough that i could stand through them on the road below.
what im getting at is any van with 200k on it is very likely well past its sell by date, the body will have faired far far worse over those miles than the engine.
i would be buying on condition not on the engine type, have a good look at the problem areas and dont be afraid to give it a poke with a stick - they can often look solid with unmarked paint and underseal and in fact be solid rust. its not that hard to do an engine swap if you must, in fact its a whole lot easier than cutting all the rust out and making sure it dosent get back in.
2007 T300 110 GLX MWB low roof with Twin side doors & blue ambition paint.
1994 2.0 EFI 80 SWB cosworth 24v work in very slow progress. Radiant Pink.
you already know what the diesel is like.....
